Mr. Kennedy (for himself
and Mr. Kerry) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the
Committee on Health, Education, Labor,
and Pensions

A BILL

To amend title V of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 to encourage and support parent, family, and community
involvement in schools, to provide needed integrated services and comprehensive
supports to children, and to ensure that schools are centers of communities,
for the ultimate goal of assisting students to stay in school, become
successful learners, and improve academic achievement.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the
Keeping Parents and Communities
Engaged Act or the Keeping PACE Act.

2.

Findings

Congress finds the following:

(1)

Research studies
consistently show a positive relationship between parental involvement and
student achievement. This relationship holds across families of all economic,
racial/ethnic, and educational backgrounds and for students of all ages.

(2)

Educators
recognize, on the basis of social science and common experience, that effective
parental and community involvement is a critical element in children's academic
and social development. Poverty, limited English proficiency, and varying
cultural expectations are among the biggest barriers to effective parental
involvement in schools.

(3)

Schools with
effective parent and community involvement activities provide bridges between
parents, community-based organizations, and schools to improve communication,
information sharing, services, and comprehensive supports for children and
families.

(4)

Educational
research suggests that student achievement improves in environments where
learning is a community value, and where schools have the ability to address a
broad range of educational needs for all students, such as in full-service
community schools.

(5)

Cross-sector
community engagement of businesses, institutions of higher education,
philanthropic organizations, school boards, family and care organizations,
neighborhood and service organizations, after-school providers, and
community-based organizations, is essential if schools are to ensure that all
children meet college and work-ready standards.

(6)

More than
1,000,000 of the students who enter ninth grade do not receive a high school
diploma 4 years later and approximately 7,000 students drop out of school each
day, including a significant percentage of students with the potential of high
academic achievement.

(7)

Integrated
services and comprehensive supports, including after-school and other services,
are necessary components of effective, school-based efforts to dramatically
affect dropout prevention rates, increase graduation rates, and improve student
achievement. In one national study, 98 percent of students receiving such
services and supports stayed in school, 89 percent had fewer suspensions, and
85 percent of eligible seniors graduated.

3.

Outreach and
coordination

(a)

In
General

Title V of the Elementary
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7201 et seq.) is
amended by adding at the end the following:

E

Parent and
community outreach and engagement

5700.

Grants
authorized

(a)

In
General

The Secretary shall award grants to States to enable the
States to award subgrants—

(1)

on a competitive
basis, to local educational agencies that receive assistance under part A of
title I to enable such agencies to assist public elementary schools and public
secondary schools served by such agencies to hire and maintain Parent and
Community Outreach Coordinators, pursuant to subpart 1;

(2)

on a competitive
basis, to eligible entities to provide necessary integrated services and
comprehensive supports to students and schools, pursuant to subpart 2;
and

(3)

to eligible
entities to create schools as centers of communities, pursuant to subpart
3.

(b)

Application

A
State that desires to receive a grant under this section shall submit an
application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by
such information as the Secretary may require, including the following:

(1)

A description of
the State's need to engage parents and the community in students' education, as
described in subpart 1.

(2)

A description of
the State's need for community-based resources to address student and family
needs.

(3)

A description of
the progress a State is seeking relating to the indicators outlined in section
5707(b).

(4)

A description of
the State's capacity and resources across multiple State agencies to integrate
their existing State and Federal (managed by the State) programs with local
educational agencies, schools, and community-based organizations.

5700A.

Authorization
of appropriations

There are
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this part $260,000,000 for each of
the fiscal years 2008 through 2012, of which—

(1)

50 percent shall be used to carry out
subpart 1;

(2)

30 percent shall be used to carry out
subpart 2; and

(3)

20 percent shall be used to carry out
subpart 3.

1

Parent and
Community Outreach Coordinators

5701.

Purpose

The purpose of this subpart is to provide
support, through competitive subgrants, to schools who may work in conjunction
with a community-based organization, to hire and maintain Parent and Community
Outreach Coordinators to—

(1)

ensure that
families and communities participate in the education of their children and
become an integral part of the school climate and culture;

(2)

enable principals
and teachers to complement and enrich efforts to help all children make
learning gains, prepare for graduation, and plan for their futures through
parent and community involvement activities that include educational, family,
and financial planning necessary to make postsecondary education a reality;
and

(3)

act as a liaison
with other coordinators from Federal, State, local, and private programs that
serve the school, including community school coordinators, 21st Century
Community Learning Centers, school health coordinators, and violence prevention
coordinators, as appropriate.

5702.

Subgrants
authorized

A State that
receives a grant under section 5700 shall award subgrants, on a competitive
basis, to local educational agencies that receive assistance under part A of
title I to enable such agencies to assist public elementary schools and public
secondary schools served by such agencies to hire and maintain Parent and
Community Outreach Coordinators.

5703.

Application

(a)

In
General

A local educational agency that desires to receive a
subgrant under this subpart shall submit an application to the State at such
time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information as the State may
require.

(b)

Contents

An
application submitted pursuant to subsection (a) shall include the
following:

(1)

A description of
the schools to be assisted by the local educational agency under this
subpart.

(2)

The current state
of family and community engagement in the schools, including a description of
the ways in which families and communities are engaged during the school day,
before school, and during after school and summer hours.

(3)

The particular
family and community outreach needs identified by the schools, parents,
families, and community-based organizations.

(4)

A workplan to
address the needs identified in paragraph (3).

(5)

A description of
the desired progress of the local educational agency related to the indicators
outlined in section 5707(b).

(6)

A description of
the capacity of the schools for measuring school-specific outcomes of the work
provided by the Parent and Community Outreach Coordinators.

(7)

A description of
the capacity of the schools for supporting a position of Parent and Community
Outreach Coordinator by providing space and adequate resources.

(8)

A description of
how the activities supported with funds under this subpart will be coordinated
with the programs and activities carried out by the local educational agency
pursuant to section 1118, including whether such activities will be supported
with funds provided under title I.

5704.

Awarding of
subgrants

(a)

Priority

In
awarding subgrants under this subpart, a State shall give priority to
applications—

(1)

proposing to
target high-need schools—

(A)

with the highest
proportions of students from low-income families; and

(B)

with a large
percentage of students who fail to meet the State's challenging student
academic achievement standards, as assessed pursuant to section 1111(b)(3);
and

(2)

submitted by
local educational agencies describing a partnership structure that delineates
how the local educational agency, community-based organizations, local
government, institutions of higher education, and other key institutions will
come together to support a common vision, defined results, and measures of
effectiveness, with clear roles and responsibilities, and a plan for serving
multiple schools.

(b)

Duration of
Subgrant

Each subgrant awarded under this subpart shall be for a
period of 5 years.

5705.

Screening and
evaluation committee

(a)

Establishment

A
school receiving assistance under this subpart shall establish a screening and
evaluation committee that shall consist of the following members:

(1)

The school
principal or headmaster.

(2)

Two parents of
students enrolled at the school.

(3)

A teacher who
teaches at the school.

(4)

One
paraprofessional at the school.

(5)

Community
partners.

(6)

The
superintendent of the school or a designee of the superintendent.

(b)

Hiring

A
school that receives assistance under this subpart shall hire, based on the
recommendation of the screening and evaluation committee, a Parent and
Community Outreach Coordinator.

(c)

Oversight and
Evaluation

The screening and evaluation committee shall prepare
and submit an evaluation to the local educational agency on an annual basis
regarding the performance of the Parent and Community Outreach Coordinator
based on the indicators of effectiveness described in section 5707(b). The
local educational agency shall submit such report to the Secretary.

5706.

Parent and
Community Outreach Coordinator

(a)

In
General

A Parent and Community Outreach Coordinator hired
pursuant to section 5705 shall—

(1)

provide
leadership in building relationships, bridging gaps, and facilitating the
creation of partnerships among school staff, families, and community members;
and

(2)

provide support
and resources—

(A)

to increase
participation of family and community members in the school; and

(B)

in support of all
children's learning, including those children meeting or exceeding academic
achievement standards (as assessed pursuant to section 1111(b)(3)).

(b)

Responsibilities

Each
Parent and Community Outreach Coordinator shall—

(1)

implement a
family needs and parent involvement assessment at the school that includes
goals and suggestions on how to improve family and parental involvement in the
school, with particular attention to the needs of low-income families,
limited-English proficient families, families living in rural areas, families
with children in either the child welfare system or juvenile justice system,
families experiencing homelessness, and families whose children may have
special development needs;

(2)

develop an
individual workplan that includes an overall family and parental engagement
action plan for the school, which shall include a description of the community
resources that will be brought into schools as well as a strategy for
connecting students and families with resources available within the
community;

(3)

establish and
maintain consistent, effective, and timely communication with families
especially low-income, limited English proficient, and minority families in a
variety of ways;

(4)

work with the
principal or headmaster of the school and school staff to establish an
environment in which families feel safe, welcome, and free to voice their
opinions;

(5)

act as an
advocate and liaison to assist parents and school staff to resolve issues at
the school and district levels;

(6)

work with other
Federal, State, local, and private partners to develop and implement
activities, programs, and training aimed at assisting families to support
student learning needs and postsecondary education planning;

(7)

create, organize,
strengthen, and support a school parent council (which may include a school
parent teacher association) that is representative of the school
community;

(8)

work with the
principal to engage parents in school-based decision-making bodies, including
recruiting nontraditional parents and providing training and support to parents
participating in such an entity;

(9)

as appropriate,
participate in the school's school improvement process and development of
school improvement plans;

(10)

take part in
ongoing training and professional development which may be provided by
community-based organizations and other staff serving at the local educational
agency that serves the school;

(11)

have the ability
to relate to students as a caring adult; and

(12)

carry out other
duties specifically related to the engagement of families and the community as
designated by the principal or headmaster of the school.

5707.

Evaluations

(a)

In
General

Each Parent and Community Outreach Coordinator
shall—

(1)

be directly
supervised and evaluated by the principal or headmaster of the school on a
regular basis; and

(2)

be evaluated on
an annual basis by the school's screening and evaluation committee established
under section 5705 in order to determine the effectiveness of the
Coordinator.

(b)

Effectiveness

Each
screening and evaluation committee shall work with the local educational agency
and the Parent and Community Outreach Coordinator to identify indicators of
success related to the activities supported under this subpart, and to develop
baseline data and evaluate progress on such indicators, which may
include—

(1)

student
achievement as measured by assessment data, classroom grades, and participation
in programs and services for gifted and talented students;

(2)

student
attendance rates;

(3)

graduation
rates;

(4)

lower mobility
rates;

(5)

lower dropout
rates;

(6)

fewer detentions,
suspensions, and expulsions;

(7)

postsecondary
education attendance;

(8)

a school
environment in which parents, community members, and all school visitors are
greeted with respect and courtesy;

(9)

the degree of
communication between schools and families, including personal interaction,
school visits, home visits, telephone calls, and publications;

(10)

the degree of
participation in parent-teacher conferences, open houses, family nights, and
other school-based activities;

(11)

the degree of
school-wide awareness and completion of home-school compacts;

(12)

the frequency of
ongoing workshops, training, and other events that provide families with tools
to support their child's learning at home and enable planning for postsecondary
education experiences; and

(13)

ability to
relate to students as a caring adult.

(c)

Basis for
Evaluations

In evaluating a Parent and Community Outreach
Coordinator under this section, the screening and evaluation committee shall
base such evaluation on case studies, interviews, and outcomes based on the
indicators described in subsection (b).

5708.

Report

An eligible entity that receives a subgrant
under this subpart shall submit a biennial report to the Secretary regarding
activities conducted by such entity with subgrant funds received under this
subpart.

2

Connecting
students to community resources and comprehensive supports

5721.

Purpose

The purpose of this subpart is to provide
support, through competitive subgrants, to eligible entities to—

(1)

improve the coordination, availability,
delivery, and effectiveness of integrated services and comprehensive supports
for children and families; and

(2)

act as a liaison with other organizations
in order to assist public schools in providing children and families the
integrated services and comprehensive supports needed to improve the learning
of children and their ability to plan for postsecondary educational
opportunities, such as health, employment, mentor/tutor, and human services,
enrichment and accelerated learning opportunities, before and after-school
programs, and recreation, and related assistance.

5722.

Eligible
entity

In this subpart, the
term eligible entity means 1 or more community-based organizations
in partnership with public schools.

5723.

Subgrants
authorized

A State that
receives a grant under section 5700 shall award subgrants, on a competitive
basis, to an eligible entity to connect integrated services and comprehensive
supports to students and families in order to enhance student learning and
outcomes, by—

(1)

conducting an
assessment of student and family needs in schools;

(2)

assessing the
availability and quality of learning opportunities beyond the classroom,
including service-learning opportunities;

(3)

linking needed
integrated services and comprehensive supports to children, their families, and
their public schools, and evaluating the impact of such services and supports
once the services and supports are provided;

(4)

enhancing the
social, emotional, intellectual, and physical development of students;
and

(5)

providing
training and support related to integrated services and comprehensive supports
for staff, teachers, and, as appropriate, Parent and Community Outreach
Coordinators in such public schools.

5724.

Application

(a)

In
general

An eligible entity that desires to receive a subgrant
under this subpart shall submit an application to the State at such time, in
such manner, and accompanied by such information as the State may
require.

(b)

Contents

An
application submitted under subsection (a) shall include the following:

(1)

A description of
the public schools to be assisted by the school or community-based
organization, their performance with respect to other State performance
criteria, and a description of their student populations (including
demographics).

(2)

A memorandum of
understanding between the public school and the community-based organization
that explains how they will work to effectively coordinate the provision of
integrated services and comprehensive supports to students within the public
school (and with after-school and extended day programs and services, if
applicable), the objectives that they expect to achieve, the educational
research bases that will guide the provision of student integrated services and
comprehensive supports in meeting their objectives, and the capacity of the
community partner to meet their objectives.

(3)

A description of
how the community-based organization plans to build and improve on the current
state of community involvement to increase support and ownership of the
integrated services and comprehensive supports designed to enhance student
learning outcomes, including the measures of progress and desired results
related to students and families.

(4)

The particular
student needs to be addressed through integrated services and comprehensive
supports and the organizations able to provide integrated services and
comprehensive supports to meet those needs, including intellectual, social,
emotional, and physical well-being, and other academic and non-academic needs
related to student learning, including planning for college or other
postsecondary education options.

(5)

A draft work plan
regarding the provision of integrated services and comprehensive supports,
including a description of—

(A)

the role of the
public school principal and staff, including the Parent and Community Outreach
Coordinator, if applicable, in the management of the provision of integrated
services and comprehensive supports;

(B)

how the
community-based organization will efficiently manage and leverage non-Federal
resources (which may include in-kind resources) to meet identified student
needs;

(C)

plans to track
student performance along with integrated services and comprehensive supports
provided to students over time, including plans to integrate the
community-based organization's data reporting with the public school’s data
systems;

(D)

criteria by which
the eligible entity will evaluate the effectiveness of services and
comprehensive supports provided to students, including a description of the
proposed measurements used to evaluate the impact of such services and supports
on the academic achievement of students; and

(E)

plans to leverage
other non-Federal resources (which may include in-kind resources) to support
integrated services and comprehensive supports.

(6)

Assurances that
activities supported with funds under this subpart will be coordinated with the
programs and activities carried out by the public school pursuant to section
1118.

5725.

Awarding of
subgrants

(a)

Priority

In
awarding subgrants under this subpart, a State shall give priority to
applications—

(1)

proposing
integrated services and comprehensive supports to high-need public
schools—

(A)

with the highest
proportions of students from low-income families; and

(B)

with a large
percentage of students who fail to meet the State's challenging student
academic achievement standards, as assessed pursuant to section 1111(b)(3);
and

(2)

that include a
partnership structure that delineates how such eligible entity will work with
other organizations, including local government, institutions of higher
education, and other key institutions that will come together to support a
common vision, defined results, and measures of effectiveness, with clear roles
and responsibilities, and a plan for serving multiple schools.

(b)

Duration of
Subgrant

Each subgrant awarded under this subpart shall be for a
period of 5 years.

5726.

Report

An eligible entity that receives a subgrant
under this subpart shall submit a biennial report to the Secretary regarding
activities conducted by such entity with subgrant funds received under this
subpart.

3

Schools as
centers of communities

5731.

Purpose

The purpose of this subpart is to provide
incentives to schools, in conjunction with the applicable local educational
agencies, and mayors, nonprofit organizations, for-profit organizations, and
other community partners, such as 21st Century Community Learning Centers and
other after-school providers, to redesign such schools as centers of
communities that—

(1)

encourage the
participation of family and community in children's education;

(2)

engage students
as resources to their communities;

(3)

encourage
extensive and innovative community use of school facilities, which may include
renovation and expansion of existing facilities to coordinate and deliver
integrated services and comprehensive supports to families, children, and
communities;

(4)

assist in keeping
school facilities open outside of traditional school hours in order to promote
community use of such facilities; and

(5)

engage the
community in the redesign and planning of such facilities.

5732.

Definition of
eligible entity

In this
subpart, the term eligible entity means a consortium of a school
in conjunction with the applicable local educational agency, a mayor, and 1 or
more nonprofit organization, for-profit organization, or other community
partner.

5733.

Subgrants
authorized

A State that
receives a grant under section 5700 shall award subgrants to eligible entities
to enable the eligible entities to redesign schools to be centers of
communities and to incorporate community education consistent with the purpose
of this subpart.

5734.

Application

(a)

Current
school

An eligible entity that desires to receive a subgrant to
redesign a school as a center of community under this subpart shall submit an
application to the State at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such
information as the State may require.

(b)

Contents

An
application submitted under subsection (a) shall include the following:

(1)

A needs
assessment of the school facility identified for redesign as a center of
community, including any renovations or expansions, if necessary, to enable the
school to serve as a joint-use school facility.

(2)

An assessment of
the need to keep the school facilities open outside the traditional school
hours, including the needs of the surrounding community and the existing
capacity to facilitate a joint-use school facility as a center of
community.

(3)

A description of
the eligible entity applying for the subgrant.

(4)

A description of
the eligible entity's capacity to provide integrated services and comprehensive
supports to an existing school facility to transform it into a center of
community school.

(5)

A draft workplan
of what the eligible entity hopes to achieve at the joint-use school facility,
including a description of the integrated services and comprehensive supports
that would be available to the school, students, and families through
partnership with the eligible entity.

(6)

A description of
student and family involvement in redesigning the school to become a center of
community school.

(7)

A memorandum of
understanding between the school selected for redesigning and the eligible
entity.

5735.

Matching
funds

An eligible entity that
receives a subgrant to redesign an existing school facility to incorporate
community education under this subpart shall provide matching funds, from
non-Federal sources, equal to 50 percent of the cost of activities under this
subpart.

5736.

Report

An eligible entity that receives a subgrant
under this subpart shall submit a biennial report to the Secretary regarding
activities conducted by such entity with subgrant funds received under this
subpart.

.

(b)

Table of
Contents

The table of contents in section 2 of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 5618
the following:

PART E—PARENT AND COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND ENGAGEMENT

Sec. 5700. Grants authorized.

Sec. 5700A. Authorization of appropriations.

SUBPART 1—Parent and Community Outreach
Coordinators

Sec. 5701. Purpose.

Sec. 5702. Subgrants authorized.

Sec. 5703. Application.

Sec. 5704. Awarding of subgrants.

Sec. 5705. Screening and evaluation committee.

Sec. 5706. Parent and Community Outreach
Coordinator.

Sec. 5707. Evaluations.

Sec. 5708. Report.

SUBPART 2—Connecting students to community resources and
comprehensive supports